It’s getting a bit tedious writing posts like this, but perhaps there’s a continued need to do so. The cumulative Newspoll for the first six months of the year across all states (and with a demographic breakdown) is out [table in pdf form], and poor old Dennis Shanahan is reduced to writing things like:
The biggest drop in satisfaction for Mr Rudd was in South Australia, from 68 per cent in the three months to March to 63 per cent in the three months to June.
In making the rather trite point on the 7 30 report last night that voters probably want Kevin Rudd to concentrate on addressing the big challenges he was elected to fix, and that voters don’t expect the government to fix things it can’t fix, (themes, let me just add, we’ve been pointing out here at LP for quite some time – while the media were still complaining about a “lack of a narrative”), Hugh Mackay said something along the lines of “we seem to be talking as if the government were in a lot of trouble, but it’s not”. Yep, chaos, one term, rerun of Whitlam, directionless, scandal ridden, honeymoon is over, electorate wakes from its slumber, support is soft, voters are wising up to Rudd, he’s a control freak, symbolism over substance, etc, etc, Belinda Neal, Iguanagate, blah blah. One word: whatever.
Update: Possum does the graphs thing with the quarterly Newspoll, and Lyn at Public Opinion discusses Hugh Mackay’s take on public opinion.
For once I agree with Hugh Mackay – the government is not in trouble.
OT
link some LP readers may be interested in:
http://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/video/2008/hitchens_video200808
The headline “Labor retains huge Newspoll lead over Coalition” says it all. I’ll bet Dennis didn’t write it.
@Glen Cripes, that was almost unwatchable. What a horror.
Back on topic. Nope the Govt is not in trouble, but it’s obvious there is an attempt to manufacture crisis. Anyway saw Rudd again on the 7 morning show, over the heads of the gallery and talking to the burbs.
Hugh Mackay had some very interesting things to say on the radio this morning – thinks that the Rudd government has very small window of opportunity to push things like not being able to fix petrol prices etc before the public become disillusioned with them. Comments that the state of the public is pretty much still euphoric at the moment but if the government don’t start doing substantial things rather than symbolic ones and delivering on the visionary pre-election statements then they could well run into problems.
So let’s hope they get cracking. Not that they haven’t done an awful lot already.
Re talking to the burbs – unfortunately the little time Rudd spends talking to the burbs on morning TV is more than countered by the anti-Labor hysteria both 7 and 9 run on a regular basis. I suspect RWDBs like Stepanovic who provides a regular platform for other RWDBs (such as Bolt), and to a lesser extent the Sunrise crew – they do seem to be more balanced – have far more influence on the electorate than any of the out of touch RWDBs we read in the Australian and elsewhere. Which is why I watch them, rather than listening to AM. I like to know what the enemy is doing.
Absolutely Mark! Keep up the good work. It is fantastic that you and others go through all the tripe written by Shenahan and others, while all I have to do is read your blogs!
Yes, agree with Guido. Keep it up, Mark!
I dunno about Kevvie. What’s he doing?
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“Hi? Car-making dudes? I was wondering if you wanted a chunk of other peoples’ money to come here and build a factory? Oh. You were going to build it anyway? Well c’arn take the money anyway. I got nuthin’ better t’ do with it. Wife’s loaded and I got me new X-Box ‘n everythink.”
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Onya Kevvie.
Update: Possum does the graphs thing with the quarterly Newspoll, and Lyn at Public Opinion discusses Hugh Mackay’s take on public opinion.
Did anyone see this sunrise debate? It has it all: Honeymoon over, Rudderless, one-term government etc. Do they hand around the Liberal party talking points before the show?
SunriseLink
I can’t say I ever watch this program to know if this is typical, but you’d have to say the ALP Government is up against it if this is the tenor of debate – ignoring, of course, the last minute attempt to salvage some suggestion of impartiality by throwing in Julia’s name.
Yeah? Well, they ain’t gonna fix the Murray. Btumby says no.
Mar @ 11,
Did see. Was terrible. Mitchell has been spruiking this garbage for a while now, I gather. As for Ida, for some reason I’ve never been able to take her seriously – and its not because she’s a woman -thjere’s just something about her.
If you think Sunrise is bad, check out the Today Show. They write the Liberal Party talking points.
And this has been going on for weeks now.